25 Best Opening Lyrics

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25.

"You were working as a waitress in a cocktail bar"
--Human League's 'Don't You Want Me'

Thanks to lyrics that crack like silver-screen dialogue, the New Wave adaptation of 'A Star Is Born' is a classic in its own right.








24.

"I've been a bad, bad girl"
--Fiona Apple's 'Criminal'

This great, great line should have warned us that a naughty, naughty MTV awards speech was coming.








23.

"You never close your eyes anymore when I kiss your lips"
--The Righteous Brothers' 'You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin''

DJs first thought Bill Medley's brooding vocals were playing at the wrong speed. The song became the most played in radio history anyway.







22.

"Go, shorty. It's your birthday"
--50 Cent's 'In Da Club'

These words have spread way beyond da club: Uncles now shout them out at da bar mitzvah.








21.

"Hello, Darkness, my old friend"
--Simon and Garfunkel's 'The Sound of Silence'

It reads like Dante's 'Inferno,' but it's forever linked to the equally sinister imagery of Dustin Hoffman floating in a pool.








20.

"I am an Antichrist"
--Sex Pistols' 'Anarchy in the UK'

These four words say it all, and the Sex Pistols could have stopped right there. Actually, they pretty much did.








19.

"Well, I guess it would be nice if I could touch your body"
--George Michael's 'Faith'

Sing these words in a recording studio, and you win Album of the Year. Say them in a public bathroom, and you get busted.








18.

"We don't smoke marijuana in Muskogee"
--Merle Haggard's 'Okie From Muskokee'

Hippie haters took this line a little too literally. Heck, for all we know, the Hag was stoned when he wrote it.








17.

"I was dreaming when I wrote this"
--Prince's '1999'

Sung in unison by backup ladies Wendy and Lisa, this trippy line foretold all of the Purple One's eccentricities.








16.

"Pigs, they tend to wiggle when they walk"
--Pavement's 'Stereo'

So, so true. Don't overthink this one, people.









15.

"She was more like a beauty queen from a
movie scene"
--Michael Jackson's 'Billie Jean'

From the time when the weirdest thing about him was his spangly glove.







14.

"There must be some kind of way out of here, said the joker to the thief"
--Jimi Hendrix's 'All Along the Watchtower'

Dylan may have written these words, but even he agreed that Hendrix owned them.







13.

"What's with these homies dissin' my girl?"
--Weezer's 'Buddy Holly'

And with these words, Rivers Cuomo became the dorkiest rock star since, well, Buddy Holly.








12.

"A candy-colored clown they call the sandman tiptoes to my room every night"
--Roy Orbison's 'In Dreams'

Beautifully haunting by itself, chillingly twisted in 'Blue Velvet.'








11.

"Oh, I just don't know where to begin"
--Elvis Costello's 'Accidents Will Happen'

Even when he's at a loss for words, rock's walking thesaurus can turn a phrase.








10.

"Tommy used to work on the docks"
--Bon Jovi's 'Livin' on a Prayer'

In eight blissful syllables, Jon Bon Jovi out arena-rocked that other dude from Jersey.








9.

"Jesus died for somebody's sins but not mine"
--Patti Smith's 'Gloria'

The rock poet explained her famed line to us last year: "I didn't want anyone having to die for my sins."








8.

"Well, it's one for the money, two for the show, three to get ready, now go, cat, go!"
--Carl Perkins' 'Blue Suede Shoes'

A car accident prevented Perkins from belting out these iconic words on national TV. And, while he was laid up in a hospital, he had to watch Elvis do it.






7.

"In the time of chimpanzees I was a monkey"
--Beck's 'Loser'

And in the time of grunge devotees, he was real funky.









6.

"Why do birds suddenly appear every time you are near?"
--The Carpenters' 'Close to You'

Penned by Burt Bacharach's wordsmith Hal David, this line is still the envy of Hallmark scribes.








5.

"Don't call it a comeback"
--LL Cool J's 'Mama Said Knock You Out!'

And, ironically enough, these words announced hip-hop's first major ... er, rebound.








4.

"Well, she was just seventeen -- you know what I mean"
--The Beatles' 'I Saw Her Standing There'

And with that, screaming girls across the globe had hope.









3.

"Hey, ho, let's go!"
--The Ramones' 'Blitzkrieg Bop'

The four words that spark late-inning rallies at Yankee Stadium are also the words that started punk rock.








2.

"I was born in a cross-fire hurricane"
--The Rolling Stones' 'Jumpin' Jack Flash'

We don't know if they're referring to World War II England or if this is another drug reference. Either way, it's pretty tough.








1.

"She's a very kinky girl"
--Rick James' 'Superfreak'

And he was a very kinky dude: The funk legend would later go to prison for forcing a woman to be his sex slave.